


Room For One More?

by suemarysue



Series: Snapshots [4]
Category: Captain Marvel (2019), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Birthday Party, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Very fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-11-28 17:07:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20970050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suemarysue/pseuds/suemarysue
Summary: "Tell me about where you are.”“It’s beautiful. Really beautiful.”Maria pauses the dishes and takes a long sip of her beer. Maybe she doesn’t want to hear about how beautiful it is out there.“Maria, I can say for certain it’s the most beautiful view in the universe.”There’s a quiet knock on the glass door behind her. It’s not loud enough to really startle Maria, but she spins, alert.It’s Carol.Carol’s standing outside in the rain, looking at her.****Carol surprises Maria. / Years later, Maria surprises Carol.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!

**Then…**

“I’m sorry I can’t get the holograms to work tonight.”

“It’s OK,” Maria says. It’s not. It’s really not. But it’s not Carol’s fault. “At least we can still hear each other.”

“Yeah.”

They’ve been talking on a holographic communicator for about eight months, usually once a week. When Carol left (after she returned), she hadn’t left anyone other than Fury a way to contact her. But a few days later, a box with a note appeared on Maria’s porch. “So we can talk. — C,” it said. Carol had signed it, as if there needed to be clarification as to who had left a piece of alien tech on the front porch. Maria had only been out for a short while before she came home to find it. She felt quite certain Carol had watched and waited until she wasn’t home to put it there, but she never asked.

“It must be the storm here,” Carol says.

“It’s storming here too.”

The first few months had been awkward. Carol called every other week, but the calls got shorter and shorter, at least the parts when she spoke with Maria. After about three or four calls, Carol had asked, with a hint of both annoyance and hurt, “Do you not want to talk to me or something?”

“What?”

“You never call me.”

“I didn’t think you’d want me to call you.”

“That’s why I gave it to you!”

“I don’t want to bother you while you’re… punching an alien or something.” Maria had often picked up the communicator, but it never felt like the right moment, and what would she have to say that was more pressing than whatever Carol was doing? It’d be best to just let Carol call when she could, she had decided.

“I won’t answer if I’m busy. It’d just…” Her voice had lowered. “It’d be nice to know you called.”

And after that, they spoke weekly, with each taking turns calling the other. Maria always called when Monica was home, but when Carol called, it was sometimes just the two of them.

They never talked about when Carol might come back to visit. They also didn’t really talk about the past. Maria let Carol bring up any memories she had, but those were few and far between. She wasn’t about to ask her what she remembered, or what those six years were like. She knew Carol felt bad enough. Had been through enough. None of that was the kind of conversation you had via hologram anyway.

Mostly, Carol would share updates on the search for a home for the Skrulls (still looking), her quest for the high score on the pinball machine (not going well) and the latest planets she had seen (all beautiful and weird in their own way). Maria would update on her job offer from SHIELD (still thinking), Fury’s eye (not healing) and the Tesseract (still in Goose). There was often not much time for much else. Especially when Monica was home and awake as Maria usually ceded most of the call to her.

About four months into their calls, Maria had had a bad few days, and Carol had listened while she vented, insulted the people Maria was mad at, offered some ideas on how to find a solution for the problem. That had really felt like old times, Maria thought.

Then after about five months, Carol seemed a little… different.

“You seeing anyone?” Carol had asked one night after Monica had gone to sleep.

“Nah.” Maria had thought she saw Carol smile? “I did get asked out the other day, though.” If Carol had smiled, it was gone now.

“You say yes?”

Maria shook her head.

“Why not?”

“Not my type. What about you?”

Carol had laughed and shook her head. “Not a lot of interest in a half-human, half-Kree amnesiac who can shoot fire from her fists.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” Maria had replied. “And you’re all human.”

It had felt like something, a moment maybe? But then Carol had to go.

Another call, a few weeks later. “Tell me about the last movie you saw that you loved,” Carol had said.

“Oh, you should ask Monica that.” Carol’s so busy, why would she even care what movies she saw, Maria wondered.

“I know Monica’s answer. I also know her all-time top five movies and her current top five movies. None of those are the same, by the way. I want to know about you.”

Maria had wanted to ask about “I want to know about you,” but couldn’t bring herself to form the words.

Another night, Carol had called really late and Maria had been half asleep when she answered.

“I’ll stay with you until you fall back asleep.”

“Thanks,” Maria said, not entirely sure if this was a dream or really happening.

When Maria woke up in the morning, the hologram was still active, but Carol wasn’t there anymore. Instead, a note stuck to a wall that read: “Maria, I had to go. (Everything’s fine.) Hope you had sweet dreams. Talk soon. Love, Carol.”

Maria wished she could’ve saved that note.

But the last two calls since then had been back to more mundane topics, with Carol unable to talk very long. This evening’s technical issues were the most excitement they’d had in awhile.

“You just missed Monica,” Maria says. “My parents invited her to sleep over. They wanted to take her to the fair first thing in the morning.”

“That’s nice,” Carol says. “What about you? You got plans? Did I call at a bad time?”

“Big Friday night plans. Leftovers and beer. Washing the dishes now.”

“Big plans, indeed.”

“It’s been a long week.”

“You want to talk about it?”

“Not really.”

“You want me to beat someone up?”

“I’ll think about it. Tell me about where you are.”

“It’s beautiful. Really beautiful.”

Maria pauses the dishes and takes a long sip of her beer. Maybe she doesn’t want to hear about how beautiful it is out there.

“Maria, I can say for certain it’s the most beautiful view in the universe.”

There’s a quiet knock on the glass door behind her. It’s not loud enough to really startle Maria, but she spins, alert.

It’s Carol.

Carol’s standing outside in the rain, looking at her.

“What are you…?”

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

“Can I come in?” They’re still talking on the communicator, even though Carol’s right outside. “I’m hanging this up now.” She clicks a button on her wrist.

Maria’s stunned, but she somehow opens the door.

“I’m going to get water all over your floor.”

“It’s fine.” Maria steps aside, letting Carol enter, and then shuts the door behind her.

“At least the suit is water repellant. My hair, not so much.”

“Let me get you a towel.”

“Wait,” Carol says, grabbing Maria’s shoulder and pulling her into a long, tight hug. “Surprised?” Carol asks when she finally pulls away.

“Very,” Maria says, then, “towels.” She quickly leaves the room.

Carol takes off her suit jacket and hangs it on the door handle, then steps out of her boots.

They may be water repellant, but she’s still dripping rain everywhere.

Maria returns, drying some water off of herself, and hands Carol a towel. 

“Sorry,” Carol says, a little sheepishly, as she dries her hair.

“It’s all right. You don’t have to apologize. It’s just water.”

“OK.”

“What are you doing here? Is everything all right?” Why were they talking on the communicator if Carol was right outside? And what about what Carol had said just before she knocked on the window? Maria had so many questions.

“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine,” Carol says, quickly. “This isn’t really going like I planned.”

“Like you planned?”

“I just… came to visit… if I can?”

“You’re always welcome here. Can you stick around until tomorrow, when Monica’s back?”

“I can stay a week.” Carol pauses, looks down. “If that’s OK?”

“Are you sure everything’s fine? You seem kind of nervous.”

“I’ve never been so nervous in my life.”

Maria pauses. “You … you mean in the last six years?”

“No,” Carol shakes her head, her eyes still on the floor. “I mean in my _whole life_.”

“What are you saying?”

“I think I have most of my memories back.” She looks up, right at Maria. “I _know_ I love you.”

“Carol.”

“At first when I started to feel it … I wasn’t sure if I was remembering the past, or falling for you in the present. … It was both. … Can I kiss you?”

“Oh God, Carol.” Maria kisses her. “I’ve been wanting to do that since you turned up here last spring.”

Carol kisses Maria. “Six and a half years.” Another kiss.

“When did you remember?”

“I don’t even really know.”

“When you asked if I was dating anyone?”

Carol ducks her head a bit, looking down. “Yeah, I remembered a lot by then. I didn’t want to come back here and bust up your life.”

“Since when?” Maria says, nudging Carol’s chin up until their eyes meet. They both laugh, but they’re also crying. “You have been busting up my life since they day I met you. In a good way.” Just so there’s no confusion on Carol’s part, Maria kisses her again. 

They stand there like that for quite awhile, kissing and crying and clinging to each other as tightly as possible. Finally, Carol rests her forehead against Maria’s. “It’s kind of like, if you dumped out the junk drawer? That’s what my memories feel like.”

“They’re not junk.”

“No, I mean, that you’d have important stuff like the keys you were looking for, next to paper clips you’ll never use? Everything was on top of me at once. So I’d remember something like one of Monica’s Saturday morning cartoons, at the same time as remembering getting kicked out by my parents. Or the song from the ice cream truck and our first kiss. There was no ice cream truck around when we first kissed, right?”

“No, there wasn’t.”

“Yeah. It was the day your aunt visited. You were supposed to be off, but your flight test got rescheduled, so I called out sick to pick her up at the airport. You kissed me in the living room after she and Monica went to bed.”

“You do remember.”

“I do,” Carol says, wiping Maria’s tears from her cheek.

“But you’re leaving out the best part.”

Carol raises an eyebrow.

“You took her, this woman you didn’t know at all, to the beach after the airport.”

Carol shrugs. “She’d always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean.”

“It was a two hour drive each way.”

“She was like the only one in your family who wasn’t surprised that Thanksgiving when everyone found out we were together.” Carol laughs softly, but then turns serious again. “So, yeah, it was so messy in my mind for so many weeks.”

“I wish you’d told me.”

“Talking about it on the holograms didn’t seem right.”

“You shouldn’t have had to go through that all alone.”

“You never said anything—” 

“Carol, I—” Maria starts, but then stops, unsure of what to say.

“No, I get it. I do. And I’m glad you let me remember on my own.” Carol hesitates. “But I have to ask, do you want this? Do you want me?”

“Yes. More than anything.”

“Even though it’s been so long? After everything that’s happened to me?”

“We’ve been talking for eight months. I know who you are.” Maria puts her hand over Carol’s heart. “If anyone should be asking that, it’s me.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to be here, just because you remembered we used to be together. If that’s not what you want, or you’ve moved on, that’s OK.”

“I very much want you, in the present. I flew halfway across the universe because, for months, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about doing this.” She kisses Maria, deep and a little rough. “I would sit there during our calls and I’d get distracted because I had a huge crush on you. Remembering that you used to kiss me back, knowing that you might want to kiss me back now…. was honestly such a relief.”

They kiss again, but then Maria pulls back. “Wait, you know we did more than kiss, right?”

“Did we?” Carol smirks. “Maybe you can remind me?” Maria takes Carol’s hand and turns to go upstairs, but Carol stops her. “Later though, please? I have the whole evening planned, if you want?”

“Confident I would say yes, huh?”

“Very hopeful, and prepared if you did. Do you remember our first,” Carol makes air quotes, “official date?”

“We had a whole big evening out planned, but the sitter canceled at the last minute.”

“So we put Monica to bed super early, ordered pizza and watched that terrible movie.”

“We only watched part of that movie.” Maria kisses Carol again.

“Yeah.” More kissing, but the doorbell interrupts them. “Pizza!” Carol rushes to the front door. 

“How did you….?”

“Can I borrow some money?”

“Seriously, Danvers?”

Carol pats her pants, shrugs. “No pockets.”

Maria pulls two $20 bills from her purse, and hands them to Carol, who hands them both to the delivery guy. She takes the pizza and closes the door, not noticing the teenager’s stunned face.

“You just gave him like, an enormous tip, you know that, right?”

Carol winks. “I’ll pay you back.” She walks back into the kitchen.

“How did you order the pizza?” Maria asks, following her. “Wait…. and Monica? Are my parents in on this with you?”

Carol puts the box down. “Sort of. I called them and they helped. But I didn’t really tell them anything, I swear. I just said I was coming back to visit and wanted to hang out with you. I had hardly even gotten the words out before your mom was jumping in to help. But I didn’t tell her I remembered, or that I love you, or anything like that, really. Is that OK, that I talked to them?”

“Yeah. They’re kind of your family, too, you know.”

“Yeah, I think I do.” Carol nods, then laughs quietly. “So… I dream about a lot of things. Mostly you and Monica. But pizza is definitely in the top five. Pizza and cheeseburgers.” She opens the box and takes in the scent. “Your parents are bringing Monica back tomorrow afternoon. I thought we could all have lunch together?”

“I’d like that.”

“Does Monica remember … about us? I know she knew before … but she was so little, so I don’t really know if she remembers.”

“She knows. We’ve talked about it and she remembers a little, too.”

“Oh good,” Carol says, relieved. “That makes tomorrow easier.”

They put the pizza on plates, grab a few beers, and head into the living room. Maria sits on the couch. “What’s the movie?”

“Well, I _really _want to watch Star Wars—but I know it’s not your thing, and I have all week.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll never get you not liking it. It’s amazing. But for the sake of our romantic evening, I’ll move on.”

Maria laughs.

“Your dad was going to leave a few movies to choose from under the coffee table. Ones I wouldn’t have seen.” She gets down onto on the floor and pulls out movies, one at a time, tossing them to Maria. “Let’s see… let me know if any of these are good. Forrest Gump?”

“It won best picture at the Oscars.”

“She’s kinda hot.” Uma Thurman on the cover of Pulp Fiction.

“Pass.”

“On her or the movie?”

“Both. How many movies are down there?”

“Oh my God.”

“What is it?”

Carol sits up, holding a copy of The Fugitive. “Harrison Ford!” 

“I can never escape Han Solo, can I?”

Carol pulls the tape to her chest. “Please, please, please.”

“I haven’t seen it yet, and it’s supposed to be good. Let’s do it.”

“Yes!” Carol puts the movie in the VCR and settles onto the couch, putting her arm around Maria and kissing her. She takes a long sip of her beer. “This beer was our favorite, right?”

Maria nods. “You’re really here.”

“I’m really here.”

Carol and Maria had perhaps hoped they would stop watching the movie halfway through, like their first “official” date, but they’re both riveted until the end. And there’s something really nice about sitting curled up together on the couch, doing something as simple as watching a movie, no holograms needed. A new first date for their new start.

Maria walks into her bedroom the next morning, shortly after 11, finished with her shower and wearing a towel.

Carol’s just waking up. “Why did you get out of bed?” She asks, barely picking her head off the pillow.

Maria sits down on the edge of the bed and traces a hand down Carol’s back. “I don’t know what time my parents and Monica are coming over. I need to get lunch ready.”

“I’ve got it all taken care of. Your parents are going to make lunch here.” She leans up to kiss Maria. “You should’ve at least woken me up. I would’ve joined you.”

“I wanted to, but you looked like you needed a good sleep.”

“I think…..” Carol pulls away and sits up, her back against the headboard. “I know… I felt safe.” She looks down. “It’s been a long time.”

“Oh baby.” Maria sits next to Carol, wrapping her arms around her and holding her as tight as she possibly can. “You’re safe now, here, with me.”

“I know.” Carol takes a deep breath. “Maria, being with you again, last night, was really nice.”

Maria raises an eyebrow.

“Better than nice,” Carol says, blushing a little. “It was amazing.”

“That’s right.” Maria kisses her.

“But I know I surprised you yesterday. I want to make sure this is still what you want? We still have a lot to talk about.”

“We have all the time in the world to talk. And we will. But I’m in no rush. And, yes, Carol, of course. This is still what I want. You’re still what I want. I love you. That will _never_ change. You don’t need to ask ever again.”

“Understood,” Carol smiles. “Thanks.”

“The feeling’s mutual I hope?”

“The feeling is very mutual.”

“Good, that’s settled.” She kisses Carol’s shoulder. “What time are my parents getting here?”

“12:30, but they’re going to call before they leave. Your mom was really insistent that she would call first even though I kept telling her she didn’t have to. She said she didn’t want to surprise us. I don’t really know—” Maria’s laughing. “What’s so funny?”

Maria’s still laughing.

“What’s so…. Oh God. Oh no.” Carol slouches down on the bed, and pulls a pillow over her face.

“You remember now?” Maria stands up and starts getting dressed.

“I do,” is Carol’s muffled reply after a long silence. “It was _one time_.”

“I know.”

She pulls the pillow away. “And it was just the top half. And we weren’t even—!”

“I know.”

“I was hot. It was a hot day.”

“It was.” Maria’s laughing hard.

“This is so funny to you, isn’t it?” Carol pulls Maria back onto the bed. They’re both laughing and they kiss a bit more. “You’re not the one who has to face your mom in an hour having just remembered this horribly embarrassing moment.”

“I’m sure you’ll handle it with the same grace and aplomb you did the day it happened.” Maria kisses her one last time and stands up again. “I left some fresh towels in the bathroom for you.” She points to the dresser. “The shirts and jeans you wore the last time are in the bottom drawer, but you can wear anything you like.”

“Thanks.”

“Just make sure you put on some clothes before my parents get here.”

Maria dodges out of the way of the thrown pillow just in time.

When Carol finally joins Maria downstairs, it’s just a few minutes before everyone arrives. Amusingly, Carol is wearing not one, but two of Maria’s shirts—a red t-shirt with a long sleeve blue shirt underneath it. Maria can see she’s nervous, so she doesn’t tease her.

“Monica loves you so much. What you plan to say to her is perfect. It’s going to go great.”

Carol nods, but continues pacing until the doorbell rings. “Can I?” She asks.

“Go on.”

Maria stands a few feet back, finding a good spot to watch her daughter’s reaction.

“Auntie Carol!” Monica yells, predictably launching herself into Carol’s arms. “Are you back for good?”

“On vacation for a week. Got in last night.”

“Last night and no one told me?” Monica’s looks accusingly at every adult, except Carol.

“Lieutenant, that’s on me. I wanted to surprise you today.”

“Hi Carol,” Evelyn says, cautiously. Maria watches as Carol looks up at her parents and, something shifts in her face. It’s small, almost imperceptible, but Maria sees it and she realizes—Carol was so prepared, so ready to talk to Maria and Monica. But she hadn’t really thought about seeing anyone else she knows, and she knows Maria’s parents well. They hadn’t seen each other eight months ago when they came over to watch Monica. Maria had saved the Carol revelations for a few weeks later.

Monica notices the shift in Carol’s face, too. “You remember,” she says quietly at first, and then louder as Carol shares a warm, long hug with each of her grandparents. “That’s why you’re here! You remember!”

Carol laughs, caught. “I had a whole speech prepared.”

“You remember! Are you and Mom…?” She looks back and forth between Maria and Carol, bouncing up and down.

“Let’s go sit on the porch.”

“Are you?”

“Let’s go sit outside, please?”

It takes some wrangling, but Carol eventually gets Monica outside for their talk.

George quickly heads for the backyard, not making eye contact with anyone. “Carol insisted on cheeseburgers and bacon. I’ll go get the grill ready. Let me know if anyone has any special requests.”

“Is he OK?” Maria asks, then noticing her mom crying. “Are you OK?”

“It’s just a lot, for both of us, seeing her again.”

“I know, Ma.” Maria hugs her mother. “I know.”

“You look happy,” Evelyn says after a long moment as she wipes away her tears. 

“I’m very happy.” Maria heads for the kitchen and her mother follows. “Want to help me make a salad? I knew when Carol said she was handling lunch it would have nothing healthy in it.”

Evelyn laughs and they get to work making the salad. “So…. are you two are back together?

“Yes, but…. back together isn’t really correct. We’re together. We’re still figuring out how it’s going to work, but we want to try.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“Listen,” Maria says after a minute. “Carol remembers a lot, but it’s still a little messy. So let’s not turn today into an episode of This Is Your Life, please? Let her bring things up, if she wants to.”

Evelyn puts her hands up. “I wouldn’t.”

“You know you would.”

“Fine, I would. But I won’t.”

“Thank you.”

A bit later, Carol and Monica come back inside from the front porch and join them in the kitchen.

“Hey you two,” Maria says. Then, seeing that Carol is casually carrying in Monica with her left arm, “Aren’t you a little too old for that?”

“No,” is the reply from both of them.

“Too old for fun? I think,” Carol says, turning to Monica, “that your mom is just jealous.” And before Maria can even register what’s happening, Carol has picked her up with her right arm. Evelyn gasps.

“You’ll get used to it,” Monica says to her grandmother.

“Put me down,” Maria says, but she’s laughing. 

“Not until you pay the toll.”

Maria kisses Carol on the forehead, but that’s not going to be enough. “Insufficient fare.”

They’re all laughing now. “You’re a huge pain in the ass.”

“So I’ve been told. A lot.”

Maria tries to kiss her quickly on the lips, but Carol deepens it. It’s a little embarrassing to do this in front of her mother and daughter, Maria thinks, but it’s only a quick thought because she’s kissing Carol.

“You guys have a good talk?” Maria asks, once Carol has put them both down.

“Yeah, you want to tell them Lieutenant Trouble?”

“First,” Monica says. “It’s just going to be Carol now, no more Auntie.” She and Carol are both smiling. “And second…. after careful negotiation,” she says, in a very official voice, “Carol will be staying until next Monday. Since I have school during the week, and I’ve already missed almost a full day of her being back, it’s only fair she stay another weekend, so we can hang out.”

“As long as no emergencies happen,” Carol reminds her.

“Right, as long as no emergencies happen, Carol will be here until next Monday, she’ll leave after I go to school, and we will get an extra weekend together.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Maria says, happy for the extra days and happy that they both look so pleased as well.

“And, Monica and I would like to go camping in the backyard tonight. If that’s good with you?” Carol looks at Maria, who nods. “A payment on a promise I made a very long time ago.”

“There’s a meteor shower tonight!” Monica is bouncing up and down again.

This is news to Maria. Carol didn’t mention it last night or this morning. Monica had certainly never talked about how she and Carol had been supposed to go camping in the backyard six years ago. And then she realizes that Carol probably timed this entire trip so she could camp under a meteor shower with Monica. She squeezes Carol’s hand. 

Carol meets her eyes and smiles. “You could join us if you want?”

“No way.”

“You know, you’re Air Force. You could be a little tougher.”

“I’m plenty tough. I’m also smart. Why be on the ground outside when I could be inside in my nice comfy bed?”

“Don’t even bother,” Evelyn interjects. “Never could get her to go camping, or in the ocean. Put her in a plane, she’s fine, but anything else…”

“Right?? Or zip-lining or skydiving or bungee jumping! God help me the day I suggested we do those.”

“Wait, no. Those aren’t safe,” Evelyn says, but Carol just shrugs.

“Come on, Mom,” Monica says.

“I’m not going to get eaten by mosquitoes or coyotes.”

“But yet you’d let your daughter,” Carol says, “and the love of your life get eaten by them?”

“If you two want to be fools, who am I to stop you?”

Monica looks slightly panicked. “Coyotes?”

“Mom’s just kidding. And besides,” Carol says as she heats up her fist a little, earning another gasp from Evelyn, “even if there were, nothing’s going to mess with us tonight.” Monica smiles, calmed down. “I promised your grandpa I’d help with the grilling, so I’m going out back now. Will you help me set the table outside, Lieutenant?”

Monica salutes and they both head to the backyard.

Lunch with everyone is a lot of fun. It does turn into a little bit of a game show when they all realize that since Carol’s memories are fresher, she can help settle years-long arguments. Carol is more than happy to act as judge and jury.

“I told you, Evelyn!” George exclaims, triumphantly, when Carol rules that he’s right about whether they’d gotten some knick-knack in California or Texas. (It was California, on a trip to visit Maria.)

After lunch, Carol and Evelyn announce they are going to the store to get sleeping bags and other camping supplies. They’re gone before Maria can even think to give Carol money, but her mom waves her off when she tries to pay her back as she walks her parents to their car. “I owe her a lot of Christmas and birthday presents,” she says. “She’s still crazy about you, sweetheart.”

Maria smiles. “The feeling is very mutual. Thanks, Ma, for everything.”

Monica’s gone upstairs to get ready for camping, so it’s just Maria and Carol in the living room for a few minutes after George and Evelyn leave.

“You feeling OK?” Maria asks after they sit down on the couch. She puts her arm around Carol. “I know today was probably a lot.”

“It was. But, it was good. It was nice.” She points upstairs. “She’s really something.”

“She is.”

“And I liked seeing your parents again.” She starts to laugh. “Your dad gave me another ‘What are your intentions with my daughter?’ speech. I tried to tell him I remembered the first one, but he was on a mission.”

Maria laughs and buries her face in Carol’s shoulder. “Oh God, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s good. I’m fine. Only a little terrified.” She pauses. “Your daughter gave me one, too.”

Maria picks her head up.

“That one was a little less scary.”

“What did she say?”

“She wanted to make sure that I love you, and that was a very easy test to pass.”

“What about my mom?”

“By the time we went to the store, I knew what was coming, so I just gave her a speech of my own before she could say anything.”

Maria’s gone out the front door, and walked around the house, to try to surprise Monica and Carol in the backyard. They’re already sitting in their sleeping bags looking up at the sky, s’mores in their hands and a small campfire a safe distance away. Carol’s gesturing wildly with both arms pointed to the sky as Monica laughs. She takes a moment to watch them. _No Carol,_ she thinks, _this is the most beautiful view in the universe._

“One day,” she hears Carol say. “Maybe when you’re a little older. We’d have to talk about it with your mom.” Maria doesn’t have to hear the beginning of that to know it’s about Monica going to space.

“Look!” Monica yells, pointing as a meteor shoots by.

“How many are we up to?”

“Fifteen!”

“Room for one more?” Maria asks, and both their faces light up as they turn to look at her.

“Mom!”

“I brought some hot chocolate,” Maria says, gesturing to the three Thermoses in her hands. They both thank her as she hands one to each of them.

Carol opens the zipper on her sleeping bag. “You can squeeze in here with me.” It’s really not a sleeping bag made for two people, and Maria has to basically sit on Carol’s lap, but they make it work, and neither are going to complain about being a little extra close. “This is nice,” Carol whispers, nuzzling the back of Maria’s neck.

“Sixteen,” Monica says, but she’s the only one who sees it.

“You came at just the right time. It should start really picking up any minute now,” Carol says. “What made you change your mind?”

“Couldn’t let my daughter and the love of my life be out here unprotected. … Seventeen!”

A few minutes later, just like Carol said, it starts picking up, and they quickly lose count of how many. After awhile, Monica’s desperately fighting to stay awake, sleepily calling out random numbers, even though the meteor shower has died down quite a bit.

“Throw in the towel, Lieutenant Trouble. Get some sleep,” Carol whispers.

“No…. awake …. I’m ….” Then silence.

Carol and Maria bite their lips to keep from laughing. “She’s so freaking cute,” Carol says.

Maria turns in the sleeping bag so she’s facing Carol. “You’re both so freaking cute.”

Carol smirks. “Love of your life, huh?”

Maria shrugs and kisses her.

“I’m glad you came out here with us.”

“Me too.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carol stands up. “Talos, I swear, there better be TWO meteors—” She jerks open the door, but it’s not Talos.
> 
> It’s Maria and Monica. On the ship. At her door. “Happy birthday!”
> 
> Carol closes the door right in their faces, as the flash goes off from Monica’s disposable camera. She looks around at her room, which is, quite frankly, a mess. “I should’ve cleaned!”
> 
> “Carol, we already saw what it looks like in there. Let us in,” Maria says.
> 
> ****
> 
> *New Chapter* -- Carol is tired, lonely, and turning 40. But then she gets a surprise visit from her family, and a question from Maria.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!

**Now…**

“Take! That!” A strong punch to the stomach, and Carol’s opponent staggers backwards and falls to the ground. “Boom!”

But, wait, they’re getting up. “Not this time, Captain!” A swift roundhouse kick to the face, and now Carol is on the ground, knocked out.

Game over.

The character she’s controlling in Street Fighter on an arcade machine has been knocked out, that is.

“Nooo,” Carol whines, then turns to her opponent and extends her hand. “Another good game, Nesen. Same time next week?”

“Good game. Next week it is.” The little Skrull child shakes her hand. “Unless you want a break from your losing streak?”

“I was distracted today. Next time, I will have my revenge.” She looks at the watch on her wrist. “Shoot, I gotta go. See ya!”

And in a blur, Carol is running out of the common area of Mar-vell’s ship and down the long corridor in the direction of her room. She briefly considers using her super speed, but it’s not really safe in such a small space with only friendlies around. She should’ve been watching the time more closely!

“Excuse me, coming through,” she calls out as she dodges and weaves through a large group.

A right turn to another corridor where they’re doing some work to fix the ceiling, so she quickly ducks under the scaffolding and keeps running. One of the workers, Liran, tries to say something, but Carol just waves her hand. “Sorry, can’t talk! Buzz me if it’s an emergency!”

Finally, she’s about 30 feet from her room, but then Talos appears out of nowhere. “Carol, h—”

“Talos, unless there is a meteor moments away from destroying this ship, I can’t talk right now.” She puts her hand on her door, about to enter. “Everything OK?”

Talos puts up his hands. “Everything’s fine. Happy birthday.”

“Thanks.” She opens the door and there’s a ringing sound coming from her communicator. “I gotta get that!”

She enters, shuts the door behind her, and turns on the communicator. “Hello! Hi! I’m here!”

“Happy birthday, Carol!” It’s Maria and Monica, but just their voices. No hologram.

“Thanks, hi! Can you see me? I can’t see you guys.”

“No.”

Carol groans. “Not today! Uhh, let’s hang up. I’ll call you back. Maybe it just needs to reset.”

Before either of them can respond, Carol hangs up. She stares closely at the device. “Come on. It’s my birthday. Let me see my kid and my wife.” She hits a button. “Please work.”

Their call is reconnected, but still no hologram. “Damn it.”

“It’s OK, we’ll get it next time. Maybe there’s a solar flare messing with it or something,” Monica suggests.

Carol drops herself onto the bed.

“Carol?” Maria says, after a moment’s silence.

“I wish I could see you.” She sighs. “I’ve been gone so long. I missed Christmas and it’s been almost two weeks since we’ve even talked. I tried to call you yesterday, but there was no answer. I really, really want to see your faces.”

“Sorry, I took Mom to a movie last night.”

“Don’t be sorry. You should go out and do fun things. I just wish I could’ve been there.”

There’s a knock at Carol’s door, but she doesn’t move.

“Is someone at your door?” Maria asks.

“I told Talos not to bother me unless it’s an emergency.”

“So maybe it’s an emergency?”

Carol stands up. “Talos, I swear, there better be TWO meteors—” She jerks open the door, but it’s not Talos.

It’s Maria and Monica. On the ship. At her door. “Happy birthday!”

“Shit!” Carol closes the door right in their faces, as the flash goes off from Monica’s disposable camera. She looks around at her room, which is, quite frankly, a mess. “I should’ve cleaned!”

“Carol, we already saw what it looks like in there. Let us in,” Maria says.

Carol pushes a few things into a closet, tosses a blanket on the unmade bed, and shoves a pile of dirty laundry into the overstuffed hamper. She fixes her hair before opening the door.

“Oh, hi, what brings you—” she says, trying a faux casual voice, but it breaks and she starts crying. Monica takes a step back and pushes her mom forward.

Maria hugs Carol and kisses her cheek. “Surprised?”

“Very.”

“Happy birthday,” Maria whispers. “I missed you.”

Carol kisses Maria. It’s rough and it’s hungry. It’s been over four months since they’ve seen each other in person, and in the last nine months, Carol had only been back for barely even two days—Monica’s high school graduation and the day they dropped her off at college. She arrived an hour before they left for the graduation ceremony, and had to leave immediately after the party. And then Carol didn’t so much as go with them to take Monica to college, but meet them there and have to head straight back to the ship. The last nine months had been not at all what Carol expected when she left last year. Every time she thought it was quiet enough to go home for a bit, something happened—a Kree ship spotted them, or they found a potential new home they had to check out, or a group of Skrulls came out of hiding and needed to be rescued, or any number of other crises on any number of planets. She never had more than a day or two free from having to save someone it seemed.

Carol deepens the kiss, pushing them both up against the doorway.

Monica coughs. “Please don’t forget I’m standing right here, and also we’re in the hallway?”

Carol and Maria break apart, laughing, and wiping a few tears away.

“Get over here, Lieutenant Trouble.” They hug.

“Happy birthday. I told you I’d fly up here and meet you one day.”

“You did.”

This is the first trip to space for Maria and Monica without Carol, but they’ve been to space together as a family twice before this. The three of them took two brief trips to space last summer so Monica could experience it. The plan had always been to go after high school graduation, but after her junior year, Monica made the case that they should do a few trips that summer. She would be so busy getting ready for college after her senior year, it made more sense to do the trips a summer earlier. Maria and Carol were impressed by her argument, and Carol had the time, so they made two short trips out of the Milky Way Galaxy. Had they waited, they never would’ve been able to make the trip, since Carol had been gone all last summer.

“Come in. Come in,” Carol says, finally realizing they are still standing in the hallway. Maria and Monica start picking up a few heavy looking large bags, but Carol stops them. “I’ll get them. Go inside.”

They enter and Carol easily moves all the bags, as well as a large gift-wrapped box, inside before shutting the door behind her. 

“Oh, sorry,” she says, eyeing the table which is covered in newspapers from a nearby planet. “I’ve been trying to do the Koandi crossword.” She tosses the papers in the corner, and picks her Red Sox sweatshirt up off the chair and puts it on. “I only have one chair. I can go get some more. I can’t believe you guys are here. I know this room is small—”

Maria puts her hands on Carol’s shoulders and kisses her quickly. “It’s great. We’re great.” She gestures to the bed. “Sit down, and let us handle everything, OK?” Carol nods, smiles and sits down. Maria kisses her forehead. “Good.”

Monica produces three party hats from her purse. She puts one on Carol and one on herself. Maria tries to wave her off, but Monica protests. “You promised!” Maria glares and puts on the hat.

Carol watches as the two women quickly put together a little party right there in her room. Monica clicks on Carol’s stereo, a gift she gave her last Christmas, and then hangs up a few birthday signs. Maria places what seems like an awful lot of presents on the floor near the bed.

“What is all this?”

“When your fan club found out we were coming to visit you, these would not stop arriving on our porch.” Maria holds up a few red and green wrapped presents. “Christmas and birthday presents from all of us.”

Carol laughs and points to the large box. “I want to open that one first.”

“Of course you do,” Maria says, taking two bottles out of one of the bags. “Is it too early for beer? I have no idea what time it is. I’ve been on a spaceship for four days.” She hands Carol a beer and takes a sip of another.

“It’s about Noon. We’re fine.”

“What’s the drinking age here?” Monica asks.

“Forty,” Carol says, making direct eye contact as she drinks her beer. Monica groans and takes an iced tea out of the bag.

“You have a little kitchen, right?” Maria asks. She’s holding several Tupperware dishes. “We brought all your favorite foods.”

Carol has both a small kitchen and bathroom attached to her room. When she joined them, Talos insisted, despite her protests, she take Lawson’s old room on the ship, so she has a little extra private space.

Carol starts to stand up, but Maria glares. “Just hit the black button on that wall over there. Also, I was just about to do the dishes when you got here!” Maria pushes the button and the door into the kitchen rises. “I can show you how to use the oven.”

“I’ll figure it out.”

“Please let me help?”

Two voices in unison. “No.”

“Can I—”

“No.”

“May I ask how you did all this? How you got here?”

“No, you may not,” Maria calls from the kitchen.

“I know it’s hard for you, but just go with this, Carol.” Monica’s setting the table for the three of them.

“When did you get so grown up, kiddo?”

“I’m 18!” 

“Nah, that can’t be right.”

Maria reenters the room and sits down next to Carol. Monica pulls over the chair from the table and sits next to the presents.

“The food is heating up,” Maria says, taking Carol’s hand. “I thought we could open presents now?”

“I have all the presents I need right here.”

“Sweet-talking me will get you everywhere.” Maria kisses Carol. “But I know you want to open these.”

Carol laughs. “I do. I do. Give me the big one!”

“No, that one is from us, and it’s last,” Monica says. She picks up two small boxes and hands them to Carol. “Besides, Connie insisted you open her presents first.”

Carol rips open the wrapping paper on the first box. It’s a long-distance phone card, which she hands to Monica. “Call your mom more.” Monica protests that she does call Maria a lot (she really does). “You can always call more.” The second box is another phone card, which Carol also hands to Monica. “And your grandparents.”

The next presents are from the rest of Carol’s “fan club,” Angela, Josephine, Grace and Edna, and all of a similar nature. Another long-distance phone card, Carol’s favorite coffee, a neck pillow for plane travel and other small items to help remind her of and connect her to home since she travels so much. 

“These two are from Grandma and Grandpa,” Monica says, handing Carol two more presents. “They wouldn’t tell us what they were.”

The first one is her Christmas present, a soft red blanket exactly like the one at their house that Carol had admired last year. She wraps it around her and Maria’s legs.

Carol opens the second box, her birthday present, and there’s a note on top of an envelope. She reads it out loud. “Carol, a few months ago we found some old photos that had gotten lost in the basement. It’s just two photos, but we thought the three of you would enjoy them. See you soon. Love, Evelyn and George.”

Monica moves so she’s sitting on the bed on the other side of Carol, and they can all see the photos at the same time.

The first photo is of Carol sound asleep in her pajamas on the couch at Maria’s parents’ house. There’s a pillow and a few blankets, the couch clearly her bed for the night. Monica is laying on top of her, also asleep and wearing pajamas. Carol’s got both arms wrapped around Monica.

“Oh my God. This is Thanksgiving ’86,” Carol says, and she and Maria are both laughing. “Do you think they remember what this is?”

“What? Remember what?” Monica is clearly not in on the joke. 

“I think it’s time we tell her?” Carol says. Maria puts her head in her hands and nods, so Carol starts the story. “It’d only been about five months and we hadn’t told your grandparents we were together. And we didn’t want to tell them on that trip.”

“They knew Carol, of course. They just had no idea that anything had changed.”

“They had no idea about a lot of things!” Carol laughs, and Maria pokes her in the side.

“So, we got in the day before Thanksgiving,” Maria continues, “and everything was going fine until it was time to start getting ready for bed. You were awake a little later than usual because you’d slept the entire flight. My cousin Tim was there, too. He was going to sleep in the guest room. Me and you in my old room. And Carol on the couch.”

“And you _flipped out_ when they started setting up the couch for me.”

“Auntie Carol sleeps in Mommy’s bed with Mommy!”

“Always! ‘Auntie Carol _always_ sleeps in Mommy’s bed with Mommy!’ You would not stop saying that,” Carol says.

“Oh my God. I can’t believe I said that.”

“We obviously had not thought through our plan to keep things quiet. You were young enough that we thought you didn’t really get it, but old enough that we should’ve known better.” Monica groans and covers her face as Maria continues. “It was so awkward. And so silent, other than you. Everyone knew what was going on.”

“I eventually got you to accept that I was sleeping on the couch, but you were so worried that I was going to be lonely that we had to let you sleep there with me.” Carol looks at the photo again and turns to Maria. “Did you take this?”

Maria shakes her head. “I guess one of my parents did? It must’ve been before they woke me up to talk about us. Because you and Monica were already awake by the time we got downstairs, I think?”

Carol nods. “You guys were upstairs for so long. I made pancakes for everyone. I was so sure I was going to get kicked out of the house. I can’t believe they took this photo. That’s really sweet.” She laughs. “Poor Tim came downstairs, avoided eye contact with me, and left the house until the afternoon.”

“So embarrassing! I’m so sorry!”

Carol wraps an arm around Monica. “Always Lieutenant Trouble.”

“It was good though,” Maria says. “Who knows how long we would’ve waited to tell them without you telling them for us.”

“Were they upset?”

“They were upset because I hadn’t told them. It was a little weird for a few days, but that’s all.”

“Though I did still have to sleep on the couch every night of that trip.”

“I can’t believe I never knew about this!”

Maria shrugs and looks away. “So much has happened,” she says, quietly. 

Carol notices Maria’s unease and rubs her back. Sometimes reliving moments from that time was a little tough. “We kind of all silently swore never to talk about it again. There’s also not really a good way to bring it up? Oh hey Monica, wanna hear about that time you told your grandparents that your mom and I were having—”

Monica groans and covers her ears as Maria says simply, “Carol.”

“See!” She looks at Maria. “We can look at the other one later if you want?”

“No, I’m fine. This is nice.”

The second photo is included because Carol and Maria are in the background. The focus is on the huge spread of food on the table, and the image is a little blurry, but they’re in the top corner of the photo. Carol is kissing Maria’s temple.

“You guys were really cute.”

“Hey! We still are." Carol kisses Maria's temple, just like in the picture. She holds it until Monica takes a photo.

“OK,” Monica says, handing Carol several boxes. “The rest are from both of us.”

Carol again points to the largest box. “When can I open that?”

“You ask again, and I get to keep it,” Monica says, laughing. “How many Christmases did I hear that from you?”

“She’s too grown up, I tell you,” Carol says to Maria. “I don’t know how we let this happen.”

The first present is a Red Sox hat to replace the one Carol lost a few months ago. She immediately puts it on and poses for a photo. Next up, several pairs of flannel pajamas. Carol had been complaining the ship was too cold and she didn’t have enough warm and comfy pajamas with her. After that, a crossword puzzle book, which Carol is thrilled with because she’d been stuck on that one from the newspaper for a month, as she’s not very fluent in Koandi.

It’s finally time for the big box. Inside Carol finds a small television, a VCR with a handful movies, and a Playstation 2 with a several games, including Street Fighter and the latest Madden. She is _very_ excited about this present. “Are you serious? This is so cool.”

“We thought you’d enjoy being able to lie in bed and play video games,” Monica says.

Carol immediately wants to play with her new presents, but the food is ready so it has to wait. She cleans up the wrapping paper while they get the food ready in the kitchen. After a few minutes, they put the food down at the table, and Carol laughs when she sees what the meal is—burgers with pizza toppings (cheese, sauce, pepperoni) on them. Her burger is especially large and filled with extra toppings.

“Figured it’s been awhile, so we should put your two favorite foods together,” Maria says.

“Come here,” Carol says, pulling Maria close and kissing her. 

“Also, curly fries,” Monica says as she drops a huge bowl onto the table and Carol gasps.

“I’m a very lucky woman.”

The rest of the evening, they would all agree, is perfect. The pizza burgers, fries, and then chocolate cake are delicious, and they’re all laughing so much Carol thinks they are probably bothering those in the neighboring rooms. They get the TV and Playstation set up, and Carol and Monica go a few rounds in Street Fighter. After a little while, Monica announces that she has made plans to hang out with Wulin, Talos and Soren’s daughter, for the evening. She wants a tour of the ship, she says, and Wulin will also show Monica to her room down the hall. Carol knows she’s giving her time alone with Maria, and it’s very sweet.

Carol puts a communicator around Monica’s wrist. “Wear this at all times. Do not take it off. It works just like the one you have at home.” Monica nods. “And no matter what, stay on this ship.” Wulin’s been wandering off in drop ships lately, and Carol knows she’ll try to convince Monica to go with her.

“I will. I swear. Don’t worry,” Monica says, hugging her. “I’ll see you in the morning. Happy birthday.” She hugs Maria. “Goodnight, Mom.” Carol opens the door and Monica leaves.

Carol’s barely shut the door before Maria’s lips are on hers.

“I love her,” Maria says, “but I’m glad she’s gone.”

“I’m sorry my bed’s so small.”

“I don’t care. Just get in it right now.”

“Yes, ma’am.” She picks Maria up, crosses the room, and lays them both down on the bed. It’s not even a minute before there’s a knock at the door.

“Go away,” Carol yells.

“Carol, I’m so sorry.” It’s Talos. Carol stands up and starts looking for her uniform.

“One of our search party ships is in distress and in need of immediate rescue.”

“Send me the coordinates. I’m on my way.”

Talos thanks her and apologizes again. 

“Hold that thought,” she says, kissing Maria on her way out the door.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

It’s eight hours later and early the next morning when Carol makes it back to her room, the search party safe on the ship (and Monica asleep down the hall, she checked). Maria’s asleep in bed, underneath the new blanket with a newspaper across her chest. Carol notices that her room has been straightened up. The dishes are washed, clean clothes put away and the room even smells a little nicer.

She takes off her uniform and climbs into bed, tossing the newspaper onto the table before she wraps her arms around Maria. “Thank you,” she whispers. Maria stirs and Carol kisses the back of her neck. “Go back to sleep, sweetie.”

Maria turns to face her. “Everything go OK?”

“Yeah, everyone’s back safe and sound.”

“Including you.” Maria kisses Carol. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m … I’m a little tired.”

“We can just sleep.”

“Thank you.”

“Is it like this all the time?”

“Well you’re not usually here when I get back.” Carol turns her attention to a spot on the ceiling. “I’ve been waiting to ask … how long can you guys stay for?”

“We have to double check how long it’ll take to get Monica back to school, but I think we can stay about eight days?”

Carol meets her eyes. “Really?”

Maria nods.

“What if you stayed for an extra week after Monica leaves?” Carol asks.

“What if I stayed here forever?” Maria asks at the exact same time.

“What?”

“What?”

“You go first,” Maria says.

“I said, what if you stayed for an extra week after Monica leaves,” Carol says so quickly it’s barely intelligible. “What did _you_ say?”

“What if I stayed with you forever? Here, a new planet, Earth, wherever you are.”

Carol stares for a moment. “I can’t ask you to do that.”

“You’re not asking me. But also, you can.”

“I miss you like crazy when I’m here, and I don’t know when I’ll be able to come home, but I don’t know about this.”

“I know how much you want to be out here. And you should be here, you’re needed here. I know how many planets out here only have you looking out for them. Please consider letting me help you do that, and letting me look out for you.”

“Maria.”

“You don’t have to say yes right now, but please don’t say no yet. Please let’s talk about it. We couldn’t even think about it with Monica in high school, but now she’s in college and I’m sitting there in that house all by myself every night? Seeing you two days in nine months doesn’t work for me.”

“It doesn’t work for me, either.”

“I already talked to Monica and my parents about this. They’re on board.” Maria pauses. “If you don’t want me here, that’s fine. But I really, really don’t want to sit in that house without you anymore.”

“No, no. I want you here, of course I do. I’ve actually,” she stops, and laughs a little, “I’ve actually, for awhile, been wanting to ask you to stay forever, too, but then I don’t.”

“You what? Why?”

“I don’t want you to give up your life for me.”

“It’s not giving up my life to be with my wife. And I’m sure I’d be able to keep myself plenty busy on this ship, if you’ll have me on the crew. I think I saw a few things around here that I can fly?”

“I think there’s a ship or two. If you can figure out how to fly them.” Carol smirks and Maria swats her arm. “You really want to do this?”

“I do. I really do. How long have you wanted to ask me for?”

“A few weeks after we dropped Monica off at college. When I realized that it was getting harder and harder to go back and forth.”

“Carol. I’ve wanted to bring it up for awhile, too.”

“I should’ve said something, but I just got worried.” Carol puts her face in her hands. “You could’ve been in this bed months ago?”

“Wait,” Maria says, “is that a yes from you then?”

Carol takes Maria’s left hand and kisses her rings. “If you ever change your mind, and want to go back, just say so, it’s fine. I understand. Whether it’s after five days or five weeks or five years.”

“OK.”

“We can afford it?”

“Monica has what we saved for college, plus a really good scholarship, and she says she wants to do the rest herself. Everything else, yeah, I think we can afford it. We have some money saved. Maybe I’ll pick up odd jobs around the galaxy if I have the time,” she says, laughing.

“Well I don’t know about that,” Carol says, pulling Maria closer. “I intend to keep you very busy.”

“Oh, you do?”

“Yeah.” Carol leans in for a kiss, but Maria stops her.

“Is that an official yes?”

“Yes. Yes. Please stay here with me, Maria.”

Maria smiles. “Now you can kiss me.” 

The next morning, Carol has to head out early, before anyone else is awake, to go on a scheduled recon trip with Talos and their regular crew. She leaves notes for both Maria and Monica, with suggestions on who to contact if they need anything or would like anyone to show them around Mar-vell’s ship.

Carol arrives at their recon ship with a coffee in one hand, an apple in the other, and a smile she can’t get rid of on her face. She knows Talos is going to tease her about it, but he’d probably tease her either way, so she might as well not try to hide it.

He’s alone on the ship and he raises an eyebrow and smirks as soon as he sees her.

“Shut up,” Carol says, but she’s still smiling.

“I didn’t say a thing.”

“Thank you.”

Talos shrugs. “What for?”

Carol hugs him before moving on to start her pre-flight checks.

“I found us a new pilot,” she says after a few minutes.

“Can’t wait to meet her.”

“Monica, please help! She’ll be here any minute!” It’s about a month later, and Carol is in quite a state.

“First of all, please lower your voice,” Monica’s hologram whisper shouts at Carol. “It’s 1 a.m., my roommate is asleep, and I don’t know how to control the volume on this thing. I’m hiding under a blanket, under my desk, so shhh. And two, Mom’s not going to divorce you if she doesn’t like the color of the tablecloth. Just pick one.”

“Monica!” Carol whisper shouts back.

“Fine, the yellow one. It’ll make the room look brighter.”

“Thank you! Wait, it’s only 1 a.m. and you’re not out having fun?”

“Focus.”

“Right.” Carol throws the yellow tablecloth onto the table and stuffs the green one under the bed. She puts a small raspberry-colored plant on the table.

She’d been hoping to be able to pick Maria up herself, but, as usual, something came up, and Talos sent a crew in her place. Now, they’re docking on the ship and she’s moments away from seeing Maria again.

“Carol, Mom’s going to love how it looks, no matter what. Just relax.”

“I know. But I want her to love it because it’s worth loving.”

“Show me around the room again.”

Carol slowly walks the communicator around the room. In addition to the new tablecloth and the exotic plant on the table, there are two wall bookshelves, a slightly larger bed with extra pillows and blankets, and a few pictures of the three of them on the walls.

“It looks wonderful,” Monica says. “Truly.”

“Yeah?” There’s a knock at the door. “OK, Trouble, I gotta go!”

“Love you.”

“Love you more. Thank you,” Carol says before hanging up. She fixes her hair, and takes one last look at her jeans and white shirt—she hadn’t ever really needed fancy clothes on the ship, so this is the nicest outfit she has—before opening the door.

“Room for one more?” Maria says.

“You’re beautiful.” Carol had thought of a lot of things to say at this moment, but that’s all she can manage.

“I’ve been on a small spaceship for four days. Can I come in?” She starts to make her way into the room, but Carol blocks her before she can get through the doorway.

“Wait, wait. I want to carry you in.” Carol picks Maria up and carries her into the room, kissing her the entire time. She lays Maria on the bed before going back into the hallway to bring in her suitcases and a few boxes.

“You did all this?” Maria sits up and looks around, as Carol closes the door.

“Yeah. You like it?”

“I love it. It looks great in here. You didn’t have to do this for me. Thank you.”

Carol exhales, genuinely relieved. “I wanted to.” She kneels on the floor in front of the bed and rests her head on Maria’s lap. “I’m so glad you’re here.” Maria strokes her hair.

“Me too.”

They stay like that for a little while, quiet, happy to be together. “So the next two days are pretty busy for me,” Carol says. “But after that it should be calmer for a little bit.”

“It’s all right—”

“And I was thinking. You remember that planet I told you about, with the three suns?”

“Pol?”

“Yeah. We’re near it now. My friend who lives there is not home for a few weeks, and they said we can stay there if we want. It’s on the beach, really nice. We should be able to go for a day, maybe two if we’re lucky. We can leave once I get back the day after tomorrow.”

“You must be exhausted. We can just stay here.”

“I am exhausted. And I think sleeping in a fancy house and laying on the beach with you sounds like the cure for that.”

“You don’t have to impress me.”

“Maria.” Carol looks up. “That’s Valentine’s Day I’m talking about.”

“It is?”

“You didn’t realize?” She points to the Earth daily calendar hanging on the wall.

Maria shakes her head. “We’ve never really celebrated it.”

“We haven’t. But also, I can’t think of a time, ever, when we’ve been able to be together on it.” 

“The year Monica broke her arm."

“Oh sure, the emergency room and a vending machine dinner. The perfect date. How could I leave that one out?” Carol leans up and kisses Maria. “Let me take my wife on a romantic getaway.”

“When you put it that way, how can I say no?”

“You can’t.” Carol kisses her again. “You’re going to love it. This time of year the suns set and then rise two hours apart.”

“As long as we’re together, I know I’ll love it.”

“Sweet-talking me will get you everywhere.”

“It’d better. Now come here.” Maria pulls Carol off the floor and onto the bed.

“Yes, ma’am."


End file.
